(Posted 16th December 2022)
The Aderema Sustainable Tourism Initiative is currently running a fundraiser for their ecotourism project in the Aderema Hills. This is a series of hills that are home to some unique bird species, primates, and the Iteso community in Western Kenya.
Here is the link for the fundraiser and also the link for its bird species:
https://gogetfunding.com/aderema-ecotourism
https://ebird.org/
The initiator of the project is Mr. Ouma Oluoko and he wrote to www.ATCNews.org requestion for wider publicity and PR support:
‘Please learn more about it below is the information that you can share within your networks. We also welcome your donation no matter how little. Feel free to tag me along. My name on all social media platforms is Ouma Oluoko.
Our world is under threat like never before and globally we’re using the planet’s resources faster than nature can replenish itself. Your support and donations will help us build a world where people and nature can thrive in harmony. We have the solutions, and we know nature can fight back.
This time around, rather than thinking about parties and presents for Christmas, I would like to take the opportunity to once again highlight some recent, nature stories from the Aderema Hills https://www.theoluokos.
It would make my wish come true this year if some of my readers supported Aderema Hills https://www.theoluokos.
ATCNews has agreed to publish the entire appeal of Mr. Oluoko which reads as follows:
ADEREMA HILLS SUSTAIBALE TOURISM
INITIATIVE FUNDRAISING APPEAL
THE CRISIS
The entire ecosystem and the inhabitants of the Aderema Hills in
western Kenya are under threat. Unsustainable utilization of natural
resources, unethical farming trends, hunting of game meat, and
unchecked soil erosion are threatening the Aderema Hills community's
livelihoods.
The Iteso in Kenya, numbering about 578,000, live mainly in Busia County. Unlike the other
Teso-speaking ethnic groups, the Iteso have never been nomadic; agriculture has played a
significant role in their social, economic, and expressive lives as cattle have among the other
groups.
Frequent runoff on the hill slopes because of poor farming practices carries soil into the streams,
rivers, and further down to the plains. Deforestation on the hills through slush and burning is
destroying wildlife habitats and pushing the community to look for alternative livelihoods in the
steep hills and groves that are also the sources of springs and streams. Aderema Hills are among
the few habitats in western Kenya that are made home to some of Kenya’s poorly known bird
species. The bad side is that these birds are localized in these last habitats and are their last
strongholds. Apart from birds, the hills are also home to the common Vervet monkey and a small
number of De Brazza's monkeys whose populations are globally endangered because they are
restricted to small, isolated pockets of forests amid expanding farmland within western Kenya
This is unprecedented and the future of Aderema is of great concern. With different interests
competing for land, including large-scale agriculture, the Aderema Hills are in dire need of
support.
THE ADEREMA HILLS SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE
Oluokos Signature has been supporting the Aderema Hills community to diversify their
livelihoods through sustainable and regenerative tourism. This has been an effective method to
support income generation, although still exposes the communities to challenges of food
security. We are now in a position to start supporting the next step of the longer-term plan for
the Aderema Hills Sustainable Tourism Initiative by supporting the community in its efforts to
establish sustainable tourism in the Aderema Hills. This would ensure that the organically grown
fruits, herbs, and vegetables could be sold to the Oluokos Signature guests and to the
neighboring communities and markets.
This will help improve the community’s GDP in the village and allow for additional revenue to
get back to the community through the making and sale of crafts to the local and global markets.
We believe we have an attractive model that combines conservation, communities, and
commerce with an incentive to work towards increased nature conservation, complementing the
existing ecotourism business and further empowering Aderema families. The project is jointly
run between Oluokos Signature and our overseas partners, and the Aderema Hills community.
WHAT WE NEED FROM YOU
It is calculated that the Aderema Hills Sustainable Tourism Initiative will require start-up
funding of US$57,000. This money will cover the cost of building our office, accommodation
cottages, camping ground ablution block, expertise, and management. Our initiative is simple,
sustainable, and regenerative, and the efforts of the Aderema village will serve as a model for
rolling out similarly practical, mixed-use projects across the wider Amukura Hills. The longer-
term aim is for the Aderema Hills Initiative to take legal tenure of the land, establish its own
conservancy, and so take ownership of a sustainable local economy, spearheaded by the
ecotourism enterprise.
We humbly request you to take the time to explore the project below, and if you would like to
find out more, or are in a position to help, do get in touch with Ouma Oluoko or Ouma Oluoko of
Oluokos Signature at:
+254755694434 or +254755694433 or you can visit our website at
https://www.theoluokos.com/our-team-and-community.
THE INITIATIVE
In the year 2021, we bought a four-acre piece of land on the boulders that beautifully overlook a
ravine down and the valleys, hills, and plains that command some stunning views of Kenya’s
second-highest peak, Mount Elgon. Our first four acres are fondly referred to as the Oluokos Fair
Acres and we are in the process of establishing a wider nature conservancy by conserving at least
20% of our beautiful landscapes at the Aderema Hills for biodiversity recovery.
We want to accelerate our conservation work through sustainable travel. This will help to ensure
that the Aderema Hills rare bird species, primates, trees, and bushes thrive well by connecting
and restoring beautiful wild places – places that store carbon and help tackle the climate crisis
too.
EXPECTED OUTPUT
The aim of our strategy is to protect 20% of land in the Aderema Hills for the benefit of nature
and people. This means securing land to protect nature through purchase, gifts, and working in
partnership with the community. In return, this will help to deliver nature’s recovery by creating
an improved ecosystem.
Our dedicated nature ecosystem in the Aderema Hills will be a unique and special habitat. We
want this habitat and its nature to flow into the surrounding land, allowing nature and man to
coexist in harmony. To help make this happen we will work with other landowners across the
Aderema Hills, as well as on our own newly acquired land, in managing sites for wildlife.
We plan to scale up accommodation capacity in the village to new families, which will increase
the number of guests who can be accommodated in the homestay program. In return, this will
create job opportunities for over 50 individuals.
COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTION
The community is expected to contribute:
? The access roads, footpaths, and nature trails.
? Labor to initially clear and maintain the tracks.
? A dedicated community to provide policing.
? Materials and labor to build and maintain roads, footpaths, and nature trails.
? Natural materials for making the crafts.
? Attendance at any training courses.
OLUOKOS SIGNATURE CONTRIBUTION
Oluokos Signature, Kenya, which owns Oluokos Fair Acres, will provide:
? Marketing for the Aderema Hills.
? Costs for trainers and training materials.
? Costs to cover training courses and associated transport.
? Management of the development of the initiative
ADEREMA HILLS SUSTAINABLE TOURISM INITIATIVE EXPANSION AND
SUPPORT
The supported expansion of the Aderema Hills Sustainable Tourism Initiative will help to build a
more robust community of families, each working for the common interest of sustainability, and
so supporting the core management functions of our team.
? Diversifying sources of revenue and income through job opportunities, training, and
direct revenue flow builds a more robust and resilient future for the Aderema Hills
communities.
LONGEVITY AND THE FUTURE
If we can prove that this model works, we plan to roll this out over the broader Aderema Hills,
and into what we hope will be considered Aderema Hills Conservancy, stretching from Aderema
to the southern boundaries with Karisa Hill. There are options in terms of buying more land to
establish the conservancy that we are currently exploring, we expect this to be a much longer
journey. The model needs to be simple to build and maintain, and scalable across a larger area.
Never has there been a more critical time for the Aderema to build resilient and sustainable
tourism ecosystems and income generation models as camps and curio shops, organic farms to
replace a traditional the current land use plan.
FUNDING REQUIRED US$ 57,000
? Guesthouse construction – $25,000
? Office construction – $10,000
? Solar power installation – $15,000
? Marketing – $7,000
? Training on crafts making, community tour guides, community nature scouts – Cost
covered by Oluokos Signature
? Land – Cost covered by Oluokos Signature
LONGER-TERM OUTLOOK AND PLANS FOR THE ADEREMA HILLS
CONSERVANCY,
The long-term view for our work in the Aderema Hills is to support indigenous and local
communities in the Aderema village, altogether approx. 500 people by establishing a roadmap
for long-term sustainable use of natural resources that is scalable to other areas. We aim to help
communities maintain culture-based livelihoods on their ancestral lands while supporting
adaption to sustainable resource utilization.
We will carry out the necessary research, community engagement, government engagement, and
participatory planning to help the Aderema Hills communities in creating the Aderema
Conservancy in the western Kenya region, Kenya. The Aderema conservancy would blend
organic farming with conservation and ecotourism, providing a long-term and financially
sustainable model for conservation and sustainable livelihoods.
To be able to take ownership of the potential opportunity, the first step will be securing legal
tenure. We will assist the Aderema to organize their communities into an association so that they
can register an interest in the land, taking the first step in developing the Aderema conservancy.
We envisage a multi-use community conservancy, where ecotourism will be able to generate
revenues for the communities and incentivize them to protect the biodiversity in and around
them.
The Aderema Hills community will be able to put in place alternative livelihoods through the
establishment. Of the sustainable tourism initiative. This will be done through different activities;
the community will be able to harness natural resources sustainably, whilst being incentivized to
protect the surrounding environment.
Linking the economic benefits of tourism directly to the conservation of biodiversity and
improved food security will offer the dual advantage of providing measurable economic
opportunities to the Aderema community, alongside long-term sustainable financing for and
implementation of conservation.
THE FUTURE
Ouma Oluoko and Awuor Oluoko herein the founders of the Oluokos Signature will provide the
essential linkage between supply and demand by liaising with several eco-conscious
organizations to design responsible tour packages that integrate environmental, cultural, and
social considerations. Our desire to protect and develop the local and the wider communities
makes us an indispensable asset to both western Kenya and the great lakes region in general.
Our tentative long-term plans, which need to be realized with the Aderema Hills community,
include the following:
? To generate revenue from tourism for the area to reinvest back into the community
conservancy.
? Invest in the community’s organic farming projects for fruits, vegetables, grain, and
legumes.
? Invest in health and education in the area
? Conserve nature in the area – which will increase tourism revenue flow to the community.
? Controlling numbers of visitors to the hills through a low volume-high cost sustainable
tourism model supported by Oluokos Signature, through operating an accommodation
facility at the Oluokos Fair Acers in the Aderem Hills.
? Invest in improving the road access and network.
The initiative will adapt to community needs and the results of various participatory processes
conducted with the communities.
? Research into legal structures for establishing the conservancy – taking lessons learned
from elsewhere
? Stakeholder mapping.
PROJECT PERSONNEL & ROLES
? Ouma Oluoko & CEO, Technical input on sustainable tourism initiative in the
community.
? Awuor Oluoko: Operations Director, Technical input on conservation, enterprise, and
financial structuring.
? Jorge Zuleta: Europe and North America, Oluokos Signature, overseas marketing.
ABOUT US
At Oluokos Signature, we are committed to ensuring that you get up close and personal life-
changing life experiences whilst promoting responsible travel and supporting local conservation
in our handpicked destinations.
Our operations are designed to provide multiple ways to invest in the future of Africa’s nature-
based tourism venture, its people, wildlife, and wilderness. Our aim is to protect at-risk African
ecosystems by creating mechanisms to support high-quality community and conservation
projects alongside investing much-needed capital and technical support in start-up ecotourism
projects with local communities. We bring together conservation and sustainable travel
specialists to deliver this positive impact travel-driven conservation investment model.
Vision: To connect guests with responsible and ethical nature conservation programs and
community development initiatives, through life changing experiences that have a positive
impact on the ecosystems and the communities.
Mission: To deliver a sustainable travel-driven and nature-based conservation investment model
to support the fragile ecosystems, nature, and communities across East Africa.
Ambition: To safeguard through nature the protection of threatened ecosystems and wildlife
species by empowering communities to realize the value of their natural assets through the
development of community-based tourism enterprises.
WE HAVE FOUR PROGRAMS
Positive Travel: We offer unique and low carbon footprint experiences through Oluokos
Signature.
Positive Invest: We support and invest in sustainable tourism initiative start-ups with local
communities enabling them to scale up their businesses.
Nature Conservation: We support conservation by arranging visits to the local learning
institutions to introduce ecotourism and nature conservation concepts and projects through
lectures, nature walks, presentations, and documentary shows. We are also eager to teach them
about bird watching and the importance of birds’ conservation
Positive Philanthropy: We support high-impact social and conservation projects such as the
Aderema Hills conservancy.
Let it not just be an imagination… Let’s make it a reality. Together, we can save the Aderema
Hills, in western Kenya. Please visit our website for more details
Oluokos Signature Ltd
Oluokos Fair Acres,
Aderema Hills,
Box 271 – 50403,
Amukura, Kenya
Phone: +254 57 253 343 4
Mobile +254 755 694 434
WhatsApp: +254 726 063 884
Email: goeco@theoluokos.com
Website: https://www.theoluokos.com/aderema-by-oluokos-smile-with-nature
